Conventional light emitting diode (LED) lighting apparatuses require a trade-off between output light intensity and lifespan of the apparatus. More specifically, as higher power and higher concentrations of LEDs are used, the increased heat generated by the LEDs reduces operational efficiency and, ultimately, detrimentally affects the lifespan of the apparatus. To this end, there has been a growing need to provide LED lighting apparatuses with improved heat dissipation mechanisms. As is known in the art, cooling LEDs in lighting fixtures typically involves mounting the LEDs in a manner which thermally connected the LEDs directly or indirectly to a heat sink or heat exchanger that dissipates the heat into the surrounding ambient environment at a heat-transfer rate dependent upon the conditions of the ambient environment. Although such heat dissipation mechanisms can be effective, they introduce a further trade-off between heat dissipation ability and the size and weight of the apparatus. That is, conventional heat dissipation mechanisms (e.g., including fans, cooling fins, spacing assemblies, etc.) typically make a LED lighting apparatus large and heavy.
For example, one existing LED lighting apparatus 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 comprises an LED module 110, a thermal pad 120 in contact with the LED module 110, a heat sink including a first portion 130 in contact with the thermal pad 120 and a second portion 140, and a control module 150 and thermal pad 160 disposed in the heat sink. As shown, the LED module 110 includes a circuit board 112, for example a printed circuit board (PCB), and a plurality of through-hole LEDs 114, for example high-intensity white LEDs, mounted to the circuit board 112. The thermal pad 120 transfers heat generated by the plurality of LEDs 114 to the first portion 130 of the heat sink. Heat that is transferred to the first portion 130 flows radially outward and then toward the second portion 140 where a plurality of fins 142 dissipates heat to the ambient environment. The control module 150, which comprises a circuit board 152 with electronic components and circuitry for controlling operation of the LED module 110, is thermally isolated from the LED module 110 by being disposed in the first and second portions 130, 140 and by the thermal pad 160. Although the heat dissipation mechanism (i.e., the thermal pads 120, 160 and heat sink portions 130, 140) of the LED lighting apparatus 100 is effective for dissipating heat from the plurality of LEDs 114, the mechanism causes the apparatus to be somewhat larger and heavier than is desirable, and, therefore, unsuitable for application in some lighting fixtures, for example in vehicles where size and weight of components are preferably minimized.
Thus, in view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to provide a compact, lightweight, high-intensity and long-life LED lighting apparatus.